Leisha's Random Thoughts & Ponderings

Saturday, May 14, 2016

A little late starting up as we had some initial problems with the tv set and had to watch the first few minutes on my laptop. Fortunately we figured it out. :-)

OK, so in the opening they are not carrying their flags, but the flag colors spread out behind them instead. I like both, but this is cool. Those random models in geometric outfits are rather distracting though. KAS is not happy. But Calyx thinks that nothing can ever be worse than Düsseldorf, so she think it's fine.

There's Dami! Go Australia!!

Our hosts. Petra with a new dress, but again in a rather similar color scheme. Can no one think outside the box?? Greetings to Europe and the various other countries watching. Thank you to the fans. Describing the new system for listing the votes, but we talked over it. KAS is so negative, she doesn't agree with my assessment of Australia. And she thinks all the other songs suck monkey balls too. Oh well, I know better. >:-)

Belgium - What's the Pressure. Calyx: This looks like it's from the 90s. KAS: The lyrics don't match the melody, I'm confused. But trilltrall is humming along. :-) A colorful and energetic entry to open the show, but not the winner. This is one of the entries that have not been growing on me. Tanumine suggests it as a potential nil-pointer. :-)

Czech Republic - I Stand. Not among my favorites but I'm thrilled for them that they got to the final for the first time. The song is beautiful but forgettable. trilltrall says that it's a mature and sober performance. In other words there is no way he can root for this, he's not middle aged! But he is, actually. :-D A nice presentation, overall nice entry, but forgettable.

The Netherlands - Slow Down. This is among my favorites actually. I love their presentation, and the beat of the song ... it's just so nice to listen to. Calming. And this actually is quite catchy. Easy to sing along to. Calyx says no way will this win, but KAS says that at least it's possible to listen to it without dying. High praise. I like his tattoo. This is quite lovely really. I will be listening to this quite a bit, I think. But yeah, probably a little too slow and quirky to be a winner. :-)

Azerbaijan - Miracle. Now this is a song that has been growing on me. I love the chorus. trilltrall is impressed with all the gold everything. And did you notice than when she sang the word fire, holographic fires burst out behind her. Subtle! :-D Oh, here come the dancers. Tanumine can't stop laughing. Pyrotechnics! A fiery stage from the land of fire.

Hungary - Pioneer. Not among my favorites. Tuck in your shirt, you slob!! KAS says that it's supposed to be cool, I just don't understand it because I'm too old. She's only two months younger! And I may be old-fashioned, but that sloppiness is why young people can't get hired. Growl. Nobody understands about the drum, or the backing singers' outfits. KAS thinks Freddie's hair looks like her hamster's fur. I say this is the lowest point so far. Everyone agrees. Very disappointing, I usually really like Hungary.

Italy - No Degree of Separation. One of the big five - I'm the only one who's heard this entry before. But I haven't seen the presentation. Ooh, colorful. Calyx thinks that this looks like something from the 90s too. Her vocals sound low, is that just me? No, the others agree. This is a beautiful song, but rather forgettable once it's over. The presentation is absolutely stunning. Looks like barne-tv, says trilltrall. :-) But everybody would have liked to hear the lyrics ...

Israel - Made of Stars. N's reaction to the postcard: Boy George did it better. :-) I quite like this entry. Both the song and the presentation. N wants to do the spinning in a giant hula hoop thing with trilltrall. But they don't have the hula hoop. Maybe next year. Aw, this is so pretty. Loveliness!

Bulgaria - If Love Was A Crime. Ooh, I voted for this! trilltrall thinks Poli's outfit looks like she's a visitor from the future. A rather epilepsy-inducing entry, but the song has a very catchy beat. This may be getting some votes from Nannestad tonight.

Sweden - If I Were Sorry. Yawn! This entry is so dull ... ! The others haven't heard it before. N claims that it's like death metal, it's building up to something ... but no, it's not. It's just this for three minutes. KAS wants to know if the song has started yet. trilltrall thinks he must have had too much to drink already, he doesn't understand anything whatsoever. Tanumine is busy eating chips so can't comment, but is shaking her head. OK, that's the whole thing. I have to quite trilltrall's closing comment in Norwegian: Fy faen, det var ræva!! Ahahaha. The arena is going nuts. Must be full of Swedes. At least they don't have to worry about winning again. Hope they get 0 points tonight.

Some chitchat from the hosts. Bite me, stupid Swedes!

Germany - Ghost. trilltrall already doesn't like this, he doesn't like the German songs. KAS disagrees, her two all-time favorite entries are German. No, he won't be persuaded. The song is pretty good, and the presentation too, but her outfit just messes the whole thing up. Several of us have already forgotten what country this is because of her distracting outfit. "You're hurting my eyes" apparently. Oh well. Exactly what I said. I like this song a little less this time around.

France - J'ai cherché. Pretty catchy, but it reminds me of some other song that I can't remember. N thinks that he would perceive this totally differently if he was a woman. Possibly. I'm not really feeling it. This is kind of fun to listen to, but it's not, as KAS says, "hummable". I agree. Ooh, he landed on the moon.

Poland - Color of Your Life. trilltrall is a little upset that Michal isn't wearing socks, but KAS says that he's wrong, it's cool, all the kids are doing that now. She's read it in the paper. I think I would like the entry a little better if it was on the radio. The melody is very beautiful. The extremely dramatic performance is a little distracting. But overall we like it. I respect Michal, he goes all out. We like this. trilltrall will be voting for this. He is now convinced that socks are out. He will immediately stop wearing socks.

KAS and trilltrall are married, FYI. :-)

Chitchat with Petra now! What! No, it's time for Australia!! And now she's transferring us to the party arena next door to hear from Måns! No! Ooh, Carola and Loreen. And what are their all-time favorite songs? Duh, of course Carola would say Hallelujah, that fundamentalist bitch.

Australia - Sound of Silence. Oooh!! And everybody likes it! But of course. No, KAS doesn't like it. But of course. Oh, Dami can really sing. The presentation is a little weird, but who cares. If there is any justice in the world then this is the winner. Her glove jewelery thing! Her sparkly dress! The choreography!! My heart awakes! N says that this is truly Eurovision. The Australians are teaching us what the contest is all about. Yes! They have been watching the contest for 30 years and learning, learning ... Now it's their time to sweep us all off our feet and win!!

Cyprus - Alter Ego. Meh. N says he's ready for rock'n'roll. Well, I guess this is the ESC version. Rock'n'disco? KAS doesn't hate it. A tremendous compliment! I am indifferent. It's fine when I'm listening to it, but I also forget it quite quickly. But I'm glad I didn't get epilepsy.

Serbia - Goodbye (Shelter). N is annoyed that NRK's commentator is mispronouncing Sanja's name. He is Serbian so I think he's on to something. Apparently it's difficult to get it wrong. I quite like this, anyway. She's a good singer. I think they really don't need those backing dancers though. They're not necessary, the entry is strong enough on its own. Whoops! N tried to do some complicated dance move and totally failed. But now Calyx is helping out, in her way. LOL!

N and Calyx are married too. :-)

Lithuania - I've Been Waiting For This Night. N is dancing to this too. Hah. I don't really know what to say about this. It's just annoying. I actually listen to Love Is Blind quite a lot, but I will not be listening to this. Boring and repetitive. What were they thinking.

Croatia - Lighthouse. Haha, excellent joke from our commentator. Everybody's fired up about her dress. But obviously it will be torn away at a strategic point! Hah! N is shouting Cranberries, Cranberries ... This is another very pretty song that is very quickly forgotten once I'm done listening. But a good performance.

Russia - You Are the Only One. A visually stunning entry. Of course nobody is catching anything of the song, we're all enthralled by the presentation. The song is pretty good too. trilltrall demands an explanation! N says that this will definitely win, because now everyone wants to see this again. He's on to something ... !!

Spain - Say Yay!. Not happy that they aren't singing in Spanish. Hideous outfit! Oh, this is so much worse than I thought it would be. trilltrall wants them to leave the stage immediately. And here comes their special dance. We're shouting No, no ... but N wants to dance the dance with trilltrall. But omg, she fell! :-o That can't have been part of it, the screen went black. Now I feel sorry for her. But she's back on her feet! But the entry sucks anyway!!

Chitchat with Petra about souvenirs.

Latvia - Heartbeat. If anyone wants to take a nap, this might be the time. I don't understand the presentation ... and I don't like his performance. I've forgotten the song already. Bah.

Ukraine - 1944. An extremely dramatic performance but a song that I just can't get a handle on. The presentation is quite striking but the song just ... I can't get grip on it. Incomprehensible to me that this is one of the favorites. Must be because everybody hates Russia.

Malta - Walk on Water. Also not among my favorites. The guys are impressed with the opening of the presentation. trilltrall is impressed that Malta has sent Mariah Carey. I don't get this entry either ... why did we not get through, while this did?? Mysterious.

Georgia - Midnight Gold. And this bullcrap??! Haha, N liked it for three seconds, and then when they started with the split screen thing he started shouting No no no ... :-D I guess I'm happy with a different genre in the contest, but I just am so annoyed with this. Also I don't want epilepsy. Seriously, what is this?? The longest three minutes in Eurovision history.

There is something messed up with the production though. Not just on Italy. It's hard to hear the vocals.

Finally it's over ... !!

Austria - Loin d'ici. The sweetest entry tonight. As sweet as sugar! N thinks she must be a devil worshipper, no one can be this adorable for real. She probably drinks goat's blood. I love this! Obviously not more than Australia. But I totally love it. French is the perfect language to sing this in. The presentation is wonderful. I love it! And everyone agrees that it's super cute. We all agree! Wonders never cease.

United Kingdom - You're Not Alone. This is actually not complete garbage. So kudos to the British for that. But it sounded better in the video. This is actually nowhere near as good as I remembered it. And I don't think they will do anywhere near as well as I originally thought.

Armenia - LoveWave. KAS claims that Iveta is wearing a bathing suit. N says it sounds like Sonic Youth. But that was when the song had just barely begun. Now they are all weirded out like I told them they would be. trilltrall is whispering in his corner of the couch, Oh my god, this is so bad. This is so weird. Calyx is cracking up.

That's it! Ending on a bizarre note. Måns and Petra are back - Petra in green. So there are other colors available! Haha, a Vicious comment! :-D Now explaining about the voting. And the lines are open ... now!

Calyx and Tanumine are going to vote for Australia. It's their only option, they say. N wants to vote for Armenia. :-D No, now he wants to vote for Boy George.

First runthrough.

OK, two votes for Austria, and around ten for Australia. Calyx was talking to me, I lost count. :-) KAS voted for Austria and trilltrall for Australia and Poland.

Måns in the green room, with all the performers and Justin Timberlake for some reason. WTF is he doing here. Yankee go home!! Seriously, I don't get it. Also am not a fan. But whoever it had been I wouldn't have wanted to see an American on stage tonight. >:-(

An homage to Swedish pop music through the years. Yes, their entry tonight is sleep-inducingly boring, but no one can deny that they are a powerhouse in northern Europe when it comes to pop music. This was fun. :-)

And now Justin Timberlake. Disney's biggest star through the ages. I hope this isn't the entire interval entertainment, but I'm afraid it will be. Oh well, still better than the tribute to their hopelessly dysfunctional multiculturalism that I was afraid SVT was going to be forcefeeding us. But Jebus this is boring. Now he's going to perform a brand new song - the perfect time for a toilet break, in other words. I need to get rid of that pink champagne.

Whew, glad that's over. A big hand for all the performers. The second runthrough.

Måns on stage with the junior winner. Will she sing?? No, just wave. Huh.

Petra in a new dress - black this time. Now to teach us how to win the ESC. Hah, this should be good. Haha, yes it's hilarious. Ooh, Alexander Rybak! Ahahahaha, this is brilliant!! Who needs Justin Timberlake! trilltrall wants to vote for this. :-D

Lynda Woodruff live. Hopefully not for very long. No, just long enough for Måns and Petra to catch their breaths and change their clothes.

More of that revisionist documentary. But this part is actually pretty funny. Although that bit about the violent youth gangs in Stockholm would have been funnier if there hadn't been actual violent youth gangs in Stockholm. But of course since they are immigrants we can't mention them. Oh well.

Petra in pink, explaining how the votes will be presented this year. Should be interesting.

And we're on ... !! Austria gives Sweden a lot of points. But the 12 goes to Australia! Yes! OK, I can't list all of the points. I have to pay attention. :-)

When so many of the points are just added automatically, it's a little tricky to keep up. But I don't care because Australia is crushing the competition!! Yes!! Of course this is only the jury votes. Maybe the popular vote will be totally different. Fingers crossed ... ! Incomprehensible that Ukraine is doing so well. But haha, look at Germany. trilltrall is sad that Poland is doing so badly.

Måns in the green room. Talking to the Australian contingent. Dami is so excited that she doesn't even remember what her country is called. :-)

EBU is right, this is definitely more exciting. It looks like we can tell what's going on, but actually we have no clue yet. Australia is crushing everyone. But that can totally change. Eep! trilltrall says that he think they will win anyway - half the audience has voted for them because they like the song, and the other half has voted for them because they want to see what will happen if they win. :-)

OK, Australia has won the juries over, very conclusively. This is so exciting!! What have the European audiences voted?? I am atremble ... !!

Jon Ola Sand is also excited. Super excited! :-D The popular vote is confirmed as correct. Eep!! I can hardly wait!

Come on, Australia!!!!

OMG Australia got the 4th highest score! Will it be Ukraine?? OMG! Panic!

It's not Australia!! OMFG come on Russia!!!!

Noooo!!! It's Ukraine!! FUCK!! That song ... !?

I am proud to say I did not vote for this year's winner.

N says that he can actually understand it - as an eastern European he feels that there is a sensibility to the song that resonates with him. Calyx says that singing about death and massacres is a surefire way to success in eastern Europe.

OK, I now conclude two things from this result.

1: This new way of announcing the votes makes it super exciting and should be kept as standard.
2: Everyone hates Russia.

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Måns welcomes us, while Petra wears a dress that looks an awful lot like Tuesday's. Which I don't recall her changing. Sheesh! I will expect much better on Saturday.

Now addressing new viewers - the Americans and Chinese. How to describe the ESC? THE BIGGEST SHOW ON EARTH!! :-D

This musical history of the show is cute though. Ahaha, they're even trying self-irony. Remember in 2010 when they were so super offended we only gave them our 10. :-D This is actually pretty excellent. Although I'm not sure it's making things clearer for the non-Europeans ... :-)

But just keep watching, foreign friends! It will all make sense in just a few decades.

Info on the voting, which tonight is relevant to my interests, because tonight we can vote ... !! :-D Australia here I come, metaphorically speaking.

The first song ... ! Latvia opens the show with Heartbeat. Except that now Petra and Måns have kind of spoiled us all a bit with their performance. Oh well. This entry ... it's OK, far from the worst Latvia's sent. But it's nothing very special. The singer is extremely committed to his performance. :-) The presentation is interesting, rather eye-catching, but not garish. I would almost call it stylish. But it doesn't really have much of a catch to it. Forgettable.

Poland - Color of Your Life. Ooh, nice coat. And a very dramatic performance. Scenery-chewing, if that's the word I want. But at least he can sing. And the melody is quite beautiful. I'm not sure how long people will remember it though. They have a really bad slot. This is an extremely sincere effort though, good luck to them.

Switzerland - The Last of Our Kind. Another Canadian from Switzerland. A literally smoking one. Also quite pretty, but with unbecoming hair, and a rather peculiar dress. And very peculiar choreography. What is that?? Ooh, swirly blue stage ... pretty. The song is quite sweet, a pretty melody, but again, forgettable, and somewhat repetitive. I don't think the Swiss will have much luck with this ...

Israel - Made of Stars. Ooh, this is one of my favorites. A beautiful song. And a good singer, with a voice that really suits the song. Oh, he's all sparkly tonight. And the stage is sparkling too. And the acrobats spinning around behind him are also sparkling. Everything's sparkling!! This is really all very very pretty and I will be shocked!! and appalled!! if they don't make it to the final tonight.

Belarus - Help You Fly. One of my fellow podcast panelists will be watching tonight to see if there are any naked men or wolves. I told her there wouldn't be, but she said she had to see for herself. :-) Hologram wolves, and also hologram naked Ivan. He's actually wearing quite a lot of clothes. And face paint. Would you look at that. But what about the song? Well, it's OK to listen to, but it's rather repetitive. I am underwhelmed.

Chitchat with Petra, and a ride in the Eurovision taxi. This is really sweet actually. Mr Lordi, is it really you?? :-o Hard to tell, obviously ...

Serbia - Goodbye (Shelter). Please don't overdo it with the face and the grimaces ... ! This song is actually pretty good. But in their national final she just really overdid it. Fingers crossed. No, this is much better. A striking presentation too. A quite dramatic melody, I can think of a number of countries where this will go down well. Hope to see this on Saturday.

Ireland - Sunlight. I am apparently supposed to know who Nicky Byrne is. I have never been a fan of any boy band so I honestly did not recognize him when I first heard this. Oh well. This may have a chance, not only because it's him, but also because we can't tell from listening to it that it's Ireland. I am SO SICK of them banging us over the head with their Irishness, no matter how irrelevant to the song. Must ... have ... Irish ... dancers ... !!1! This time they have come to their senses. And the lyrics are not projected in giant letters all over the arena. Yay. This is actually pretty catchy too. Ireland, you aren't totally useless after all, who knew.

Macedonia - Dona. Their singer this year got them to the final in 2012, with a fantastic song, I love that song. IMO this year's entry isn't quite as good. But ooh, gorgeous presentation. And the song is quite beautiful too. Rather dramatic, some people will like that. :-) I like her voice, it really has character ... it's not for everyone, but I like it. And kudos for lyrics in Macedonian. One of their best.

Lithuania - I've Been Waiting For This Night. Another familiar face. There's a lot of them this year. Lithuania's hopeful tries for the second time with another song about how he screwed it all up and please give him another chance. How about learning from your mistakes? This entry is a bit more memorable than many others in the lineup this year, but it's not as catchy as his 2012 entry. I don't know. The presentation's very showy. I don't know what to think about this. really.

Australia - Sound of Silence. My favorite this year, hands down. I love the intro. Love the chorus. Love the whole thing!! :-) A beautiful melody, a wonderful singer ... a peculiar outfit, but you can't win 'em all. A striking presentation too. That chorus ... !! Australia FTW!! This is so good ... !! And imagine how deliriously happy they would be if they won ... !! :-D

Slovenia - Blue and Red. Another striking presentation. Also another pretty girl ... and a very happy and smiley one. -) A good stage presence. And the song is catchier than most of the other entries so far. Not at all bad. I quite like this tonight. Ooh, an acrobat. And pyrotechnics. Worth remembering.

Bulgaria - If Love Was A Crime. One more returning hero. I really like their entry from 2011, that this same singer performed. She has a pretty good voice and she's very confident on stage ... but her dress sense is perhaps a bit more suspicious. But the song is pretty catchy and she definitely has the arena going. I definitely hope to see this again on Saturday, they deserve it.

Denmark - Soldiers of Love. Speaking of boy bands ... o_O Are these guys not a bit too old to get away with this convincingly though? The song is pretty catchy though ... at least while you're listening, but I think it's also rather forgettable. The chorus is catchy but it doesn't really have that kind of hook that a song needs to really be an earworm.

Chitchat with Måns, and a show of support to the LGBT community. Our broadcaster managed to translate "Bulgaria" to "Ungarn", that's pretty impressive. Petra in the green room, and she has changed her outfit! Maybe she did that on Tuesday too and I just didn't notice?? :-o Everything's such similar colors, I can't tell ...

Ukraine - 1944. History or politics? Certainly very serious, whatever it is. Strangers are coming to your house to kill everybody ... !! But I shouldn't joke about it, it really happened ... and it can happen again, not least. But what about the song?? Well, it has quite a lovely melody, the singer pours her soul into the performance, she has a great outfit and the presentation is striking. Ooh, I love that tree ... !!

Norway - Icebreaker. Ooh, a northern postcard. A little overdone but with some beautiful views of our wild northern nature. I'm really happy with our song this year, even though it is so weird ... it's like two songs in one. She just switches back and forth between two different songs. :-) But the two melodies are very striking and memorable. She's a very good singer, very beautiful, wears a beautiful outfit ... and the presentation is lovely too, and quite a propos. It's not good for us that she hasn't been doing any press. But her performance is great! We can definitely hold our heads high this year.

Georgia - Midnight Gold. Sheesh. Not only is the song no good, they want to give us all epilepsy too with their presentation. The more I hear this song, the less I like it. I do like that there is a variety of genres in the contest, so I do appreciate it in that sense, but this has got to be pretty much the most forgettable song this year. I forgot it before it was even over.

Albania - Fairytale. A pretty good singer this year, and a dramatic performance ... and lots of gold. Lots. A pretty melody, but forgettable, like so many other entries this year. I enjoy listening to it, but I forget it as soon as it's over.

Belgium - What's the Pressure. From a golden dress to silver shorts. An upbeat dance tune to end the show, that's not too bad. But this entry just seems very old-fashioned to me. Like this could have been sent in the 90s. Maybe that's the point. But it's a bit strange. A rather strange melody too. Catchy, I guess, but ... strange, somehow. I can't put my finger on it. An enthusiastic performance though. But I still can't really see this going very far.

That's the last song! :-( The voting is open! Eep!!

The first runthrough.

OK, five votes to Australia, and one each to Israel, Macedonia and Bulgaria. My civic duty is done.

Chitchat from our hosts, and more historical revisionism from SVT.

Second runthrough.

Petra and Måns exhort us to vote while we still can ... ! But now the lines will close ... now! Well, I've done my bit.

And now for the interval entertainment - people dancing with robots. OMG, what a metaphor for Sweden. Unintentional, I'm sure. In other news, during Oslo's culture night last year I saw a man dancing ballet with an excavator. It was actually really beautiful. Much better than this. And what's with the music they're dancing to ... ??!

Back to Petra and Måns in the green room, now introducing the rest of the Big Five. Haha, our broadcaster added more info on Rybak's record victory in the subtitles than what Petra actually said. Let's brag about ourselves to ourselves! :-D Some numbers from ESC history. Now the German, Italian and British entries.

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

I am crazy excited as usual but not quite as psyched as I was last year ... SVT is so overwhelmingly politically correct that I fear all three shows will be a giant three-part homage to the wonders of multiculturalism. Which is like literally the opposite of what the ESC is about. But I'm trying to keep an open mind.

Opening with last year's winner, not surprisingly ... not a highlight for me since I'm not a big fan of this song. I like Måns but I really believe they should have been disqualified with this entry. We should have been tuning in to St Petersburg tonight. :-) Maybe next year?? ;-)

And now, our hosts! Petra and Måns. The stage looks pretty fantastic. And Petra's dress is very pretty. Presumably the first of many. :-)

Some chitchat, welcoming all of us to the show ... and a Europe joke. How cool would it be if they turned up! :-D Instructions on how to vote ... not so useful to me as we can't vote tonight, we're in the next semi. Too bad, I want to vote for Russia!! But I have no doubt I will get the chance to do that on Saturday. :-)

Finland opening the show with Sing It Away. Something totally different from last year, which can hardly do worse. I actually kind of like this song ... it has a pretty good beat and the singer is enthusiastic. But not actually that good at singing, unfortunately. And this outfit is also quite unfortunate. It's a good way to start the show, but I am underwhelmed.

Greece - Utopian Land. A pretty weak effort from Greece, IMO. Using "typically Greek" elements as usual, but I'm not impressed with this. They have done it so much better in previous years. The chorus is pretty catchy but the performance tonight seems ... I don't know, kind of stilted. The Greeks can a lot better than this. But it looks pretty with the yellow sun symbols. :-)

Moldova - Falling Stars. I really like this song. The chorus is so cool, I love the way the melody flows there. Her voice isn't the greatest but good enough for this. :-) But what is she wearing? And what's with the astronaut in the aluminum foil space suit? That's a little bit distracting. But the chorus ... !! Not at all shabby from Moldova.

Hungary - Pioneer. OMG TUCK IN YOUR SHIRT!! I do see that the floor is lava but you can still try to not look like a bum. This song is ... meh. Just really intensely meh. I think the lineup is so weak this year. Lots of mediocre songs, some pretty good ones, but no real standouts. This is one of the mediocre ones. I'm not sure what I have to say about this. It's just totally meh. Nothing memorable about this entry at all. Except that the singer looks like a bum.

Croatia - Lighthouse. Wow, her dress is the size of a lighthouse! :-D Possibly the most striking thing about this entry as it isn't very memorable otherwise ... but it is very pretty to listen to, and I really like her voice. Oops, there goes the dress. :-) She's so pretty though! This song is relatively unremarkable but so far it's actually almost the best song. o_O

A break for some chitchat and jokes. Actually quite charming with the fans in the back seat and Petra and Måns driving. :-)

The Netherlands - Slow Down. Oh, I like this entry! It's so charming. I'm not sure this oldfashioned thing will be a hit with the general audience though, but it's adorable. The song itself, the singer, the band ... and oh, the guitar solo! I love how you can sing along with the chorus before you've even heard the song through once. :-) I am charmed. Wish I could vote for them too. :-)

Armenia - LoveWave. I'm always intrigued to see what the Armenians send, they usually send something good. This year I'm a little stumped. The song has a good melody and the ethnic elements will probably go down well ... but it's not what you'd call catchy. It grows on you, but that's problematic in the format of this contest. Still one of the stronger entries tonight, and an interesting presentation, but not what you'd call an earworm.

San Marino - I Didn't Know. I wish I didn't! The first time I heard this I couldn't for the life of me figure out who on earth they're figuring this will appeal to. No one has been able to explain it to me either. It's a mystery. I think that even after tonight, we will not know. I'll be shocked if this gets anywhere.

Russia - You Are the Only One. Ooh, Russia! I really want them to do well this year, I feel that they were cheated out of their rightful victory last year. Fortunately their song is good enough that I can justify rooting for them. :-) What a presentation though! Wings! Shattering mosaics! And now, whoah! Optical illusions! :-o Very cool. Only problem is that it may distract people from the actual song. Oh well. No way will we not be seeing this again on Saturday. :-)

The Czech Republic - I Stand. A beautiful blonde is very rarely wrong ... and she's an OK singer too. The song is ... pretty to listen to, but forgettable. Nothing wrong with it though, but nothing really to remember it by either.

Cyprus - Alter Ego. This is actually not half bad. Unlike most of the rest of the songs tonight it's actually really catchy. And it's a rarity in the lineup this year ... an actual rock band. Hopefully they will stand out enough to get through. A good melody and a good beat. Good luck, Cyprus!

Austria - Loin d'ici. Finally a song that isn't in English ... ! And this song is so pretty. It could have been in a Disney movie about princesses and elves and shit. And her voice is so right for the song. I've heard people badmouthing this song, I don't see why. I think it's sweet. And actually really catchy. I realize it's hardly art, but this is about music! Let's just enjoy the pretty music. :-)

Estonia - Play. Oh, I really like this song too. I love this guy's style. He really takes it all the way. And the song is good too. It's not the type of song that's ever really catchy, but it has a really good tune. I love the presentation. Estonia really deserve a spot in the final!!

Azerbaijan - Miracle. They ave a very beautiful singer if nothing else. And what an outfit ... ! :-D She's a pretty good singer and the song is pretty good ... not very memorable but still among the better ones tonight. She's very confident on stage, but maybe a little too smiley for this rather serious song. And those dancers ... ! o_O The song is very pretty to listen to. We'll probably be listening to it again. :-)

Montenegro - The Real Thing. Another weird entry from Montenegro. But that's good, they keep us guessing! :-) This entry is ... maybe not good, but it is good that it's so unusal. They'll be remembered that way ... and it's good for the contest to have this kind of diversity. This is probably too weird to make it very far, but kudos to them for sending it.

Iceland - Hear Them Calling. They definitely have a good singer this year. And such a unique presentation! I see they're going with the same thing they did in Reykjavik. It's v. cool. But the song is still pretty upbeat and doesn't really match the very grim and gloomy presentation. Still good though. Creative. Good luck to Iceland, I'd love to watch this again in Saturday.

Bosnia & Herzegovina - Ljubav je. FINALLY someone with confidence enough to sing in their own language! And this had such a ... striking video. What will they do on stage?? Ooh, barbed wire. And what a dress! Great melody, great beat, bizarre-looking instruments, a rap in Bosnian - what's not to like?? Go Bosnia!! :-D

Malta - Walk on Water. The last song already! :-( A striking presentation, but I'm not sure what to say about the song. It's pretty to listen to, but forgotten as soon as it's over. Like so many other songs this year. I really wish Malta would win one year, because they would be SO HAPPY and the show in Valletta would be fantastic. But they have to send a better song than this.

The first runthrough. I wish I could vote!! :-(

Second runthrough.

Chitchat from the green room again. They're all winners! Yes, they are in a way - they have all won their national contests. But we haven't heard their competition ... >:-)

Some entertainment. Oh yeah, here we go, badmouthing themselves like nobody's business. I've never known a nation to be so collectively down on itself. And the results are plain to see, tragically. This also appears to be a complete fabrication of history - when ABBA won in 1974, the Swedish establishment completely despised the contest and practically fell over themselves to denounce it as bourgeois garbage. ABBA won entirely on their own merit. it's ridiculous to suggest that they were backed up by the movers and shakers. Yes, I do understand that this is meant to be funny, but historical revisionism isn't that amusing to me coming from an institution that has done so much for so long to pull the wool over the collective eyes of the nation it's supposed to serve.

I'm really hoping for Austria, and also for Moldova, but I don't know if that's realistic.

Some who won't get through;
San Marino.
Malta?
Hungary?

The voting's closed! Eep!

The interval entertainment - depressing, apparently, to honor the depressing world situation. Trying not to get political here ... but I am not interested in hearing anything about that situation at all from Swedish mainstream media. Beware. You cannot trust a single word they say, or print.

More chitchat from the green room ... going over who we will be seeing on Saturday, and introducing the French and Spanish singers. And the Swedish kid. That song is soo boring ... ! I don't understand how it can be a favorite. But sure, good luck.

The votes are in! Jon Ola Sand confirms the results. The Dumbledore of Eurovision. :-) Eep! The list!!

Saturday, February 27, 2016

OK, starting well ... funny in a way that is actually pretty funny, while also poking fun at the Swedes. I like it.

Now up from the submarine and onto the Oslo Spektrum stage. Nice segue. And, haha, they've got impersonators. A not very convincing Conchita and Lordi. This is a really cool introduction, better than they've had for a while. Cool. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to hire Jan Fredrik Karlsen.

I have to say that if they cut out the national semifinals and instead put their energy and resources into making an intro to the show of this quality, then I totally support it.

A glimpse from the eighth Lithuanian semi which is going on right now. Eight, that is a lot ... !!

Going over the rules ... and we're going to be allowed to vote from the beginning of the show again, I resent that. Should definitely change that back. >:-(

Song #1: Laika by Tonje Gjevjon, performed by The Hungry Hearts feat. Lisa Dillan. Now this is MGP!! Oh my fucking god. What is this. We are confused. How can anyone think that this could have any potential ... like, anywhere? :-o A good thing too! We're laughing our heads off now, but we don't have to be the laughing stock of Europe if we don't need to. I wonder if their English pronunciation really is that bad, or if it's supposed to sound like they have Russian accents? Sheesh. At least they have zero chance of getting anywhere since ANYTHING else will have to be better than this.

Maybe I already should have mentioned that I haven't heard any of the songs yet, just snatches of them. So these are totally my first impressions. :-)

Song #2: Into the Fire by Torstein Flakne, Anne Judith Wik, Mark Spiro and Hallgeir Rustan, performed by Stage Dolls. About what you'd expect from this band. Fine. A perfectly acceptable rock song, but with very little personality. Not what you'd call catchy. We wouldn't get anywhere with this, but we wouldn't make fools of ourselves in any way either. So far my favorite by about 1000 percent.

Song #3: Traces by Stine Hole Ulla, Ingrid Skretting and Trude Kristin Klæboe, performed by Stine Hole Ukka. A Disney-style ballad, apparently. Very pretty singer, with HUGE eyes. One of the songwriters was in the grade below me at school, uninterestingly enough. Pretty good voice. Peculiar presentation, if I'm being diplomatic. Ooh, but very pretty with all the lights in the audience. A enjoyable ballad although comparing it to your average Disney is overstating it a bit. Singer rather dull and anemic. Probably my new favorite now, although I would to be honest prefer to not vote for any of these. Fingers crossed.

Song #4: Stand Up by Danne Attlerud, Michael Clauss and Thomas Thörnholm, performed by Makeda. Now this one I quite expect to like. The singer has a pretty good voice and I think she'll have much more energy on stage. She does ... but her outfit is horrendous. Out of this world hideous. And she's surrounded by guys in snazzy formal suits. Bizarre. What is this song about ... I can't pay attention to the lyrics, I'm so distracted by her clothes. OMG. Who would allow her to be seen in public like this?? :-o The song isn't half bad - I think, I could hardly hear it over her outfit. :-o

trilltrall is having an attack of sudden anger every three minutes because he's so annoyed by Karlsen popping up in all the artist presentations. He's shouting at the screen, "I want to SHOOOT you!!" :-D

Song #5: Anyway by Tommy Nilsen and Ronny Nilsen, performed by Pegasus. A power ballad performed by ... poodle rockers, apparently. Actually not half bad. This show is on a rising curve, each song is better than the last. Or I should say "better". ;-) I could vote for this. In fact I think I will vote for this ... but will have to consider the other half of the entries first. But so far this is the best, IMO. Although of course there is nothing so far that has a snowball's chance in hell in Stockholm. :-)

Ooh, pyrotechnics ... ! trilltrall wants us to just send the pyrotechnics show and forget about all the songs.

Song #6: Feel da Rush by Fredrik Auke, Simen Auke, Mikkel Christiansen, Trond Opsahl and Christoffer Huse, performed by Freddy Kalas. KAS and trilltrall are rooting for this because the singer is from Drammen apparently. And he's one of the favorites. But his likely victory will be prevented by the professional juries, because although this is fun and very catchy, we would of course be thrashed to within an inch of our lives in Stockholm. :-D He gets the arena going like crazy though. I kind of like this, but it's very embarrassing to hear a Jamaican accent from such an extremely white person. But this guy obviously doesn't care about embarrassing himself ... or us. :-D

Can I mention as I do every year that it's SO annoying that NRK allow more than six people on stage. It's actually a kind of fraud, IMO.

Song #7: Afterglow by Laila Samuelsen, The Beatgees and Jan Weigel, performed by Laila Samuels (obv. the songwriter's stage name). Very good presentation. I like her voice. Energetic performance. Beautiful melody, maybe not super memorable ... but the half naked dancer cavorting among the audience may jog people's memories during the recap. And quite powerful while you're listening. So far at least this clearly gets my vote.

Song #8: History by André Lindahl, Jeanette Olsson and Michael Jay, performed by Elouiz. Pretty singer with excellent diction. Nice outfit, but weird presentation. Those store dummies are totally gonna start dancing at some point. I like her voice. Good melody. I really like the chorus here. Hm. This is actually quite good. This one or the previous entry ... we wouldn't have egg on our faces with either of these. Ooh, pyrotechnics ... !

Song #9: Anna Lee by David Bjoerk, Andreas Moe, David Eriksen and Alexander Austheim, performed by Suite 16. Norway's answer to One Direction, according to Karlsen. In other words, not my type of music. Never been the boyband type. But now am obviously no longer in the target audience. :-) Not sure how many of those who are actually watch this ... but they have a bunch of fans apparently, who call themselves "suitehearts" ... and the teenyboppers are the best, or alternatively worst, at voting in these sms vote things. Wild screaming in the audience. This is relatively catchy, but I still don't quite see it. Although I'm sure we wouldn't do badly with this.

Song #10: Icebreaker by Agnete Johnsen, Gabriel Alares and Ian Curnow, performed by Agnete Johnsen. I like it when people write their own songs in this contest. And this is another of the big favorites tonight. Well deserved, I'd say. Good song, well presented, pretty singer with a good voice and a good stage presence. Really nothing wrong with this, it just should have been a little catchier. But you can't have everything.

OK, that's the lineup. Now the first recap, Let me make my prediction for the first round. Four songs will get through, and my guess is that we'll be seeing again ... Freddy Kalas, One Direction Suite 16, and two female soloists. Laila Samuels and Agnete Johnsen, probably.

Awesome interval entertainment - Kate Gulbrandsen performing Mitt liv ... ! trilltrall is beside himself with happiness, singing along and cheering. Wow. He's four years older than KAS and me, I guess this is evidence of the generation gap, because we totally don't know the lyrics to that song by heart. :-D Ooh, and our performers from last year with their beautiful A Monster Like Me. This time with NRK's full choir. Stunning song that gets better every time I hear it. And Debra looks amazing, even better than in Vienna.

So I've done my civic duty - I've sent five votes each for Afterglow and Icebreaker. Fingers crossed we won't make fools of ourselves in Stockholm. That's really all I ask. KAS demands that we get to the final too, but that's really more than I sign up for. We're Norway. All we can ask is not to totally embarrass ourselves. We may not get even that wish ...

Second recap, but it's too late, the first round of voting is over.

The four "gold finalists" are in ... !! Oh, the excitement. Afterglow!! Yes! Laila performs again, entry still excellent. :-)

Second finalist ... Anna Lee. No surprise there. I like this idea of having some of the performers' most obsessive fans making a speech to appeal to the audience before the second performance. :-) Wow, these kids can't sing for shit.

Third finalist - Icebreaker! Yes! Again no surprise. My powers of perception are excellent tonight. Agnete's speechmaker isn't a fan but a former coworker of some kind. He is less certain of victory than the other two, probably more realistic. :-)

The fourth and last finalist - Feel da Rush. I knew it. OMG this idiot. Please, professional jury members, save us from this total embarrassment. Ha ha, his biggest fans are ten years old! :-D But his speechmaker was the best of the bunch. :-D But that accent ... ! To be fair though he always sings in Norwegian, this is his first ever song in English. No excuse, but maybe an explanation. ;-)

Third recap. I've sent five votes for Afterglow. But I'll be happy with any of these entries except for Feel da Rush. 75% chance of a positive result as far as I'm concerned. And I trust in the professionals. :-)

More of this wonderful interval entertainment, I love it! We've seen a lot of glimpses of MGP history so far, but I've missed Voi voi, and here it is. A tribute duet to Nora Brockstedt. Wonderful. And now other classics. Wow, trilltrall knows a lot of these old GP lyrics, I'm impressed. A hidden side to him is revealing itself. :-D Oh, Optimist ... !! We all know the lyrics to that one ... ! :-D And while we're on the subject of Jahn Teigen ... :-D Will we see him on stage?? It's the 40th anniversary of Voodoo, after all ... :-o Yes, the man himself ... ! :-D

I love this. All the dancers are jumping around like crazy and Teigen is just standing there. That's all he has to do. He's the man! :-D He just accepting the adulation. :-) An applause for Jahn Teigen - definitely!!

And now the votes are in. Oh, I forgot - now they're keeping all their votes from the first round too. Now there's a thought. Going to the first part of the country, Midt-Norge ... and they've got Icebreaker on top, quite significantly ahead too. I'm getting a feeling about that song. It'll probably be our entry. Northern Norway have the songs in the exact same order as Midt-Norge ... and Agnete is a northerner so she gets lots of votes from there. LOTS! Wow! :-o The south country next ... Icebreaker on top, again significantly ahead. But there's most people live in the east country and of course this is where Freddy Kalas is from ... KAS says that maybe we will give him a hundred thousand votes and he'll win at the last moment. Fingers crossed that we won't ... ! :-D

Do they add the first sets of votes at the end? And do we even have professional juries this year?? :-o

The west country have Icebreaker on top too, quite a bit. But now the east country ... ! Well, it won't be Afterglow, alas. Come on, Icebreaker ... ! Wow! Almost 20 000 votes ahead of Feel da Rush in second place. Yes!! We have chosen an excellent entry! Is this really Norway? The fourth really good song in a row! :-D

Aw, and she's so happy. This was a good choice all round. We will definitely not make fools of ourselves this year. My wish came true! :-D

Saturday, May 23, 2015

We finished our dinner just in time - wienerschnitzel in Austria's honor :-) - and now we are SO ready for the show ... ! :-) Great opening with the orchestra. Flashes from Copenhagen, and now from Vienna ... and then to the Stadthalle. I am atremble ... !!

A tribute to Udo Jürgens, very fitting. Merci, chérie morping into Rise Like A Phoenix, clever ... and now, Conchita!! In hot pink sequins! :-D Ooh, and they're doing the same thing the Danes did last year, they have a theme song. But even better than Copenhagen, the song has the same title as their slogan. The hosts are singing too. Conchita flies! Children on stage are singing the theme song! Fantastic. :-)

An Austrian rapper, and more from the children singing ... and the hosts welcome us all. Whee!!

Now all the performers on stage with their flags. I LOVE this way of presenting all the contestants. I'm trying to listen for who gets the biggest cheers, but that doesn't really mean much in this context ... because that's all down to who's got the biggest delegation in the audience, and that's rather too much down to location and other non-related things.

Aww, fans all over the world! Wonderful! So adorable. :-)

A little chitchat and, omg, we are on!! :-o

Slovenia - Here For You. One of my absolutely top faves this year. I love this!! The melody is fantastic, such a fantastic beat ... and her voice is so cool. Great performance. Yay! Ljubljana 2016!! :-D Calyx is not a fan of the voice ... :-)

France - N'oubliez pas. What will this look like? Huh. A city in ruins ... and white doves taking flight. So we shouldn't forget ... the horrors of war? Ooh, and they've found a way to get around the rules about only six people on stage. Hm. The presentation is kind of interesting, but the song is too ... boring. Nope, no way. We will all forget this.

Israel - Golden Boy. Another of my favorites. Such a great beat, a wonderful entry. And I love the lyrics. Just cheesy enough. :-) The kind of fun lyrics that you tend to get at Eurovision - English-language lyrics written by non-English speakers. I love it. And the performance is significantly better than on Thursday. My hopes are rising ... !!

Estonia - Goodbye to Yesterday. Not among my favorites as such, but I really like this entry. A very good melody. I really like her voice. And a good presentation, simple. They won't get that far, I don't think. But they can hold their heads up.

United Kingdom - Still In Love With You. Still scratching my head over this one. I really don't know what they were thinking. I think it's a fun melody, but it's just so incredibly wrong for Eurovision. The presentation make it even more annoying, if that was possible. Another no-hoper for Britain! Our commentator was inspired to make a couple of really funny jokes, though.

Armenia - Face the Shadow. A beautiful song, and I like their presentation and their outfits. And the backstory is of course powerful and important. But the song is just too bland for it to really have potential.

Lithuania - This Time. My mystery contestant. But this is growing on me a little bit. Not that I would vote for it myself, but I can kind of see why other people would. It's a fun entry. They're really getting the arena going. No wonder after the last couple of entries, I guess ...

Norway - A Monster Like Me. A beautiful song, excellent singers, a very good presentation ... and the audience is really into it ... but it just may be too depressing. But they don't think so in the Stadthalle ... hm. N. really likes this, he hadn't heard it before, he thinks it's very interesting. And that a lot of the other entries aren't capturing his interest. Hm. Yes, We will definitely be getting quite a few votes from the Balkans ... :-)

Sweden - Heroes. Very catchy, a great beat, and I do like Zelmerlöv. I just feel so strongly that he should have represented Sweden in 2007. :-( The one thing I don't like about this is that the presentation has absolutely nothing to do with the subject of the song. Whatever that may be, I guess. Also, hummingbirds, as far as I know, don't actually sing. Anyway ... I like this, and I won't be sad if it wins ... except that I would LOVE for us to do better than them just to shove their arrogant faces in it.

Cyprus - One Thing I Should Have Done. This is so sweet! Absolutely charming. I like this so much. Probably too low key to really get anywhere, but it would be hilarious if it did. :-) Totally charming and deserves every vote it'll get. :-)

Australia - Tonight Again. Oh, the uniqueness!! So cool that Australia is here this year. They'll get a bunch of votes just for being new and exotic. But this really is a fantastic song. Such a great beat, wonderful singer and a very good performance ...the presentation is weird, and the female backing dancer's outfit is hideous, but you can't win 'em all. Wonderful entry for Australia. Definitely a potential winner.

Belgium - Rhythm Inside. I really like this entry too. And I dig their presentation too. Experimental. :-) I think this is too weird for the audience in general, but I love the fact that it's here. Kudos to the Belgians for sending something so ... outside the box. The only innovative entry so far this year, says Calyx.

Austria - I Am Yours. I really like this entry. Lovely melody, great rhythm, wonderful lyrics. Totally charming entry. Yay for the host!! But of course nobody wants them to actually win ... :-D

To the green room and Conchita ... and some bad jokes. Aah, traditions ... !! :-)

Greece - One Last Breath. One of my least favorites this year. OMG she looks exactly like Cat Deeley, I never noticed that before. Her singing is so annoying ... all those breaths and pants. Annoying. Calyx says she must be very badly trained as that is one of the first things you learn to avoid in voice lessons. I don't know, I just know I don't think it sounds good. And the song itself, regardless of the singer, is just bland. Meh.

Montenegro - Adio. One of the most beautiful entries this year. I love this. Absolutely beautiful melody. A lovely Balkan ballad. N. is unimpressed ... and he's Serbian, so I'm willing to take his opinion into consideration. But I think this is beautiful. And major kudos for singing in their own language.

Germany - Black Smoke. I like this song a lot, but the others aren't fans. Calyx loathes the presentation. I'm not a big fan of it either. It's very choreographed and ... sort of calculated. I like this less tonight than I ever have before, actually. Hm. And what the hell is she smiling for, this is supposed to be sad??

Poland - In the Name of Love. A beautiful but not very memorable entry. Very cutesy presentation, A lovely song, and a beautiful singer with a good voice, but what's going to make us remember it? The wheelchair? Another entry that's just too bland.

Latvia - Love Injected. Like Belgium, this may be too weird, but I'm so thrilled to have it in the final. Creative and original. Wonderful! I love the chorus. And the presentation is fantastic. Major kudos to Latvia. N. thinks this is the winner. o_O I'm not entirely convinced ... :-)

Romania - De la capat. N. likes the singer's jewellery. :-) I like it too, plus I also really like the song. A very good melody, but too ... even, if that makes sense. A good band and a very good performance, plus the presentation is good, interesting. And I really like their subject matter. An topic that's actually important. Kudos. But a little too bland, alas.

Spain - Amanecer. Another of these powerful ballads that are lovely to listen to but very quickly forgotten. That thing with the cloak and the dress is the most memorable thing about this entry. Nothing wrong with this entry, but I'm pretty sure we won't be tuning in to Madrid next year.

Hungary - Wars for Nothing. N. thought Cyprus was dull, so I guess he may fall asleep during this one. :-) I like it a lot, though. Lovely melody, beautiful presentation, lovely singer with a beautiful voice. Important message, of course. But is it too low key? Probably. N. is still awake but not impressed. :-)

Georgia - Warrior. Now he's awake ... !! :-D So is the Stadthalle, by the sound of it. This entry certainly has a memorable presentation. Striking. Cool that she's alone on stage even with a song that seems to just beg for a crazy dance routine. It has crazy lyrics instead! A powerful entry.

Azerbaijan - Hour of the Wolf. One of the best ballads this year. An absolutely beautiful melody. I really like the presentation too. It makes a little bit more sense of the title. :-) I don't think it has what it takes to reach the top - but then I didn't think their 2011 entry had that either, so what do I know? :-) Definitely a very good entry from Azerbaijan, as usual.

Russia - A Million Voices. Another of the very best ballads this year. Beautiful song ... and a beautiful singer. It's so interesting that the Russians keep sending these songs about peace and fellowship across borders ... ! This is definitely memorable enough to make it very far ... maybe even all the way.

Albania - I'm Alive. Another singer who smiles while singing something supposed to be sad. Oh well, at least in this song the sad part passed quickly. Pretty singer, pretty song ... beautiful while you're listening, but by the time the Italians are halfway through their song we won't be able to hum this one to save our lives. And people are calling this a favorite? Nope.

Italy - Grande amore. Now this entry has it all! This is Eurovision! :-D Italian opera-singing hipsters ... and boy, can they sing! The kid with the glasses especially, he's fantastic. Grande amore!! :-D OMG they are SO Italian. And the old ruins ... !! :-D This is fantastic. They just have no shame. They have pulled out absolutely all the stops ... and why not?? :-D So fantastic. I love it. We all love it. This is seriously a contender. A wonderful way to close the performance part of the show.

The hosts start the voting ... ! How should I vote? Tactically or from the heart? :-)

A runthrough of all the songs. I'm thinking, I'm thinking ... !

One vote for Slovenia. Five for Serbia. Three for Israel. One for Italy and one for Australia. My civic duty is done.

The first part of the interval entertainment ... Austrian musicians. Percussionists and horn players. Now singers too. Nice!

Second runthrough ...

The voting is closed ... now!!

Ooh, Conchita on stage! Yay! I haven't heard this song before. I like it!! I think I'll have to buy her album ... What a blouse she's suddenly wearing. o_O A little chat with Conchita ... and then this year's Junior ESC winner. What a voice for such a young boy.

One of the hosts in the green room ... and the others with Conchita and the trophy. Now reactions from winners over the year, Adorable!! Squee!!

Now to Jon Ola Sand and his announcements ... in plural this time.

The first points .... !! Should I make a guess? I think the winner will be ... Serbia, Russia, Sweden? Italy? Australia? No, I have no idea. It's so even this year, and so many good songs. I can't guess. There's actually almost not a single song that I would be horrified to see as the winner this year. Except the UK, but that goes without saying.

Now it's time to eat cake ... !! Calyx's horribly deformed Esterhazy torte. But I'm sure it'll taste good. :-) And it has the Austrian colors since she didn't have any apricot jam and had to use raspberry. :-D

The Belgians are voting now. It's looking a lot like this will be a fight between Russia, Sweden and Italy. Australia's on fourth and the gap between third and fourth is just massive. Huh,

I cannot BELIEVE that Austria hasn't gotten a single point yet ... !! Boo, Europe!!

I'm soo glad that Belgium and Latvia are doing so well ... !!

Halfway through the points ... Conchita's in the green room with the Russian delegation. Aw, I love that she's so protective of the Russian singer. The audience aren't cheering very hard for her. But if you want to follow Conchita's philosophy then you would never dream of penalizing this young woman for the actions of her government ... !!

This is such an exciting scoring this year ... !! I love it! :-D So even and things are changing with every new country giving their points. Nerve-wracking ... !! :-D

Sweden's in the lead and Måns is deliriously happy ... ! :-D

And they've won!! 328 points and they can't be beaten! N. is thrilled, he's wanted them to win since he heard the song for the first time. Ie, about two hours ago. :-D Sweden is the winner! Måns is completely ecstatic ... ! And gets a very warm hug from Conchita. Aw.

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Now this is the exciting semi ... ! Not because we're in it :-) but because the entries tonight are much stronger. Almost all my favorites are in this semi. And yay, I can vote for them!!

No big flashy opening tonight. Aw. I guess they're saving the big guns for Saturday. :-) Again pretty dresses on the hosts - but Conchita has the best outfit. Charmingly casual introduction of the contestants. Lots of cheers for us! I hope it's not just because there are lots of Norwegians in the audience. :-) And quite a big cheer for Israel too, yay.

I forgot to mention this on Tuesday but I think the stage looks great.

A pretty big cheer for Sweden too.

A brief presentation of the seven pre-qualifiers, and instructions on how to vote. I LOVE the fact that we can only vote a limited number of times for each entry. I wonder what would happen if each viewer only got one single vote ... ??

And now, the songs ... !!

Lithuania first - This Time. Ick, I don't like her outfit. Or his. And it looks like they're performing in front of the Macedonian flag. o_O The colors are changing ... and are quite distracting ... but that may be for the best. I don't think this is sounding good tonight. A totally typical ESC song. I'll be shocked if this gets anywhere.

Ireland - Playing with Numbers. What will this look like?? Please not ... you know ... Irish. Hm. It's actually looking really good. And the song is so pretty. She has an unusual voice, it really fits the song. Kudos for co-writing it herself. Ireland's best entry since I don't know when. Still, it's another one of the slowish ballads that are so abundant this year. So it doesn't really stand out.

San Marino - Chain of Lights. Not one of my favorites, to put it mildly. Ouch, her voice ... ! Supposedly this entry is so much better now, in this "new" version, than it was in their national selection. Someone told me that on Youtube. I can't really tell the difference. I like it even less now. The first time I hear the chorus I like it, there's something to the beat there ... but then it just gets annoying. Blech. Please, let's not have to hear this again on Saturday ... !

Montenegro - Adio. This song is so beautiful ... ! Not surprising considering who wrote it. Major kudos for having lyrics in Montenegrin. A beautiful Balkan ballad. I was worried it might be a little too bland - yet another ballad - but this packs quite a punch tonight. The audience is really enjoying it. Fingers crossed for Montenegro ... ! :-)

Malta - Warrior. My least favorite song called Warrior this year! I think this song is really just ... boring. The singer's not very good either. I would LOVE to see the Maltese win one year, they would go into a collective delirium with happiness ... but there's no chance of that happening this year. Yawn.

Conchita in the green room, The hosts on stage.

Norway - A Monster Like Me. A beautiful but depressing song. Talented singers, especially Debrah, she has a wonderful quirky voice. And wow, she looks great! Her hair looks so much better done this way compared to how they'd done it at our national selection. An extremely low key and simple presentation, which is good. Ooh, crescendo. The audience is digging it. Yay us. Pretty sure we'll make the cut this year. :-)

Portugal - Há um mar que nos separa. Lyrics in Portuguese as always, major kudos for that. They really never give up. :-) But I don't think this song has much potential. There's nothing wrong with it, it's just ... bland. The singer is putting in her best effort, but ... boring. :-(

The Czech Republic - Hope Never Dies. She's an OK singer, he's awful. AWFUL. Kind of fancy presentation but that can't save this entry. Another boring song. I've already forgotten it. Too bad for the Czechs, it's great to have them back ... !

Israel - Golden Boy. Yay ... !! My favorite this year. I can't stop listening to it. It's fun and modern yet sounds so distinctively Israeli. And it has those adorably cheesy lyrics that we all love in ESC songs. :-) His singing voice isn't too great tonight, though. But he definitely has the audience going. Oh, this is making me nervous ... ! I love the song but it doesn't sound its best tonight. And the presentation is ... kind of overwhelming, maybe too much so. Fingers crossed ... !

Latvia - Love Injected. Tonight's weirdest entry? I like it. Kudos to Latvia for sending something so original and different. Edgy. :-) I like her voice. And I really like their presentation - the way they're working her dress into the background. Coolness. This may be too weird for the audience, BUT I'm sure it appeals much more to the younger section of the audience, and they vote more. So ... ? :-)

Azerbaijan - Hour of the Wolf. Peculiar title, but a beautiful song. I really really like this. And the audience in the Stadthalle seem to like it too? Pretty presentation. Ooh, I like this. Good luck, Azerbaijan!

Iceland - Unbroken. What an awful dress she's wearing. Totally inappropriate, IMO. And ballet slippers. Sheesh. Ooh, aurora borealis ... !! OK, a striking presentation, and that's a great idea to show off Iceland like that. But the song ... pretty singer with a pretty good voice, and a song that's quite beautiful to listen to, but not memorable. No "hook". This might get through but it just as well might not.

Conchita in the green room again, talking to Debrah and Geir, and then Leonor from Portugal.

Sweden - Heroes. Finally, Måns Zelmerlöv on the Eurovision stage ... !! I wanted soo badly to see him there in 2007, so this is a bitter-sweet moment for me. :-) But this is a very catchy song. Definitely memorable. :-) They're using the same presentation as they did in their national selections, which I think it weird ... what does it have to do with the subject of the song? o_O But it's got a wonderful beat. The audience is loving it. This is a shoe-in for the final. :-)

Switzerland - Time to Shine. Kudos to whatshername for writing her own song. Very weird outfit. Or, wahey! It's a trick! :-D Her voice isn't sounding too great, but she's giving a great performance, and the audience is totally into it. I never really have faith in Switzerland but this is better than I expected. Though that doesn't really mean much when it's the Swiss. :-( Good luck, anyway. :-)

Cyprus - One Thing I Should Have Done. This is such a sweet and charming song. Adorable. And they're keeping it simple in every way. Love it! It may be too low key for this contest but that hasn't stopped a bunch of other songs. Like Hungary's the day before yesterday. :-) I don't know if they can manage it, but I would love to see this again on Saturday. :-)

Slovenia - Here For You. My other favorite! I just dig this entry. LOVE IT. :-D Love the melody, the beat, the lyrics, her voice ... and now their presentation too, it's totally Eurovision. OMG this is perfect. And it's sounding great!! I think this may actually be turning into my #1 favorite now ... ! :-o

Poland - In the Name of Love. A worthy end to the show. A beautiful ballad ... ooh, I love the intro. That little piano thing that is repeated here and there. The singer is beautiful and has a good voice ... and major respect for refusing to give up her career just because she's in a wheelchair now. I'd like to see this get through, and it well may, but it is yet one more ballad without too much personality. Beautiful, but a little bit meh. Nice presentation though. And will be remembered more easily because it's the last song.

Conchita in the green room, hosts on stage. The voting is on!! First overview. What to vote ... ??

OK, I voted. Three times for Israel, five times for Slovenia, and twice for Cyprus. Sorry, Israel! But Slovenia's performance was better tonight ... !

A little entertainment - Austria's non-musical contributions to the contest over the years.

More entertainment while we wait on tenterhooks for the results. Haha, lots of screwups from past votes. I love seeing old stuff like this from contests of years past ... ! It's so cool to think that this has been going on for well over half a century. Here's to another sixty years ... !!

The hosts chitchatting to the rest of the Big Five. The UK and Italy. Ooh, Italy ... ! :-D Germany. I love their song this year. Their singer reminds me of Anna Kendrick for some reason. And then the Austrians - I like their song a lot too, I'm really happy that they've sent a good song. :-)

But OK, I have to make some guesses here. Let me think. Hmm.

These are certain to get through:
Sweden
Norway
Montenegro
Azerbaijan

And probably Poland.

These won't make it:
Malta
San Marino
Lithuania
The Czech Republic

Obviously I'm hoping intensely that Israel and Slovenia will get through, but I honestly can't say for sure. I have faith in them, but it could go either way. Fingers crossed ... !! :-)

All the others are in the same situation, could go either way, hard to call it. But I don't care that much about them. Go Slovenia!! And Israel. :-)

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

I am seriously so crazy excited to see what the Austrians have got for us this week. I'm sure it's going to be fantastic. And now it's starting ... !! :-)

Last year's winner is opening the semifinal, that's unusual. Normally I'd expect them to save this for Saturday. Makes it even more exciting to wonder what they'll have for us then. :-) Conchita is wonderful of course. I love this song so much, it's so beautiful ... and they're really making absolutely the most of it. :-)

Great way of introducing the performers! I loved it in Copenhagen when they all walked with their flags across the stage, this is a fantastic way of doing the same thing. Hmm, did I detect a few extra cheers for Serbia? They're my favorite tonight. :-) A big cheer for Russia, that is ... good, I suppose. Wow, biggest cheer so far for Georgia. Huh.

Dancing in the aisles ... !! :-D And now the crescendo of the song. Wow. This is really really extremely good. And it's only the semi ... ! I hope they're not blowing all their fireworks tonight ... ;-)

The hosts. Nice outfits, but they don't match each other at all. Peculiar choice. The traditional scripted jokes. Highlighting their motto for 2015, Building bridges, which is a really good one IMO. Instructions on how to vote, alas, I cannot vote tonight. The Serbians will have to make their way through without my help.

OK, we're on ... ! Eek!

Moldova opening the show with I Want Your Love. They have had soo much drama this year. And all for such a crappy entry, too. Although it is nice to see a Ukrainian on stage, at least, even if he's performing for another country. But wherever he's from and whatever's happened , he can't sing for shit. A lousy voice. The studio version is actually bearable, but live this is just so cruddy. And the presentation is beyond tacky. Cut your hair and get a job, kid!

Armenia - Face the Shadow. Ooh, medieval-style outfits. And that wheel thing they're standing on is cool. Some of the singers have good voices ... actually most of them ... but one of the women is just really annoying me. The song ... I'm going to say this a gadzillion times before the week is over, but it's one of those entries - ooh, a map of the world, and they're each going to their own continent! :-D What was I saying? Oh yes, One of those entries that is lovely to listen to while you're listening, and then you almost immediately forget about it. Too bland.

Belgium - Rhythm Inside. Ooh, I like this entry! One of the most original songs this year. One of the only original songs this year. It may be a little too far out of the common way to go very far - and the presentation's pretty weird too - but the Belgians should be proud of themselves for sending this. Great beat.

The Netherlands - Walk Along. What will she be wearing?? Ooh, something much nicer - much more age-appropriate - than what she wore at their national final. That was pretty easy though. The song though, that's the most important thing ... it's nice but not that special. Relatively catchy. Not going to get anywhere near as far as their entry last year though. Not memorable enough.

Finland - Aina mun pitää. I work for the Norwegian branch of a Finnish company, and my boss here in Norway is Finnish. He really can't stand this song. :-) He's so annoyed that they chose it and he thinks it won't get anywhere whatsoever. Personally I don't like the song at all as it's just not my type of music at all ... I am still happy to see the genre in the contest though, but I don't think it's going anywhere either. I don't think there are enough fans of this genre who will vote in this contest. :-) And I don't think the sympathy votes will carry the day either. Alas.

The hosts explain what the hell Australia is doing in the contest. :-D A trip to the green room where Conchita has changed both her dress and her hair. Awesomesauce.

Greece - One Last Breath. One of my least favorite entries this year. Not because it's bad, it's just boring. Beautiful but bland. And it doesn't sound Greek at all ... I think it'll appeal less to the audience because of that. The presentation is very striking though. So much drama. Almost enough to take my mind off how breathless she sounds. Maybe it's intentional, she's on her last breath ... :-)

Estonia - Goodbye to Yesterday. I really like this song, it has a great melody. A really good beat. I love the intro especially. Ooh, this presentation is great, they're really working the subject of the song. Pretty good voices too. Hers especially. Wish I could vote tonight, I would send a vote or two Estonia's way. :-) In terms of melody and lyrics this is definitely one of the most memorable songs tonight.

Macedonia - Autumn Leaves. Another song that is nice to listen to, but very quickly forgotten. Not particularly catchy. I don't think the performance tonight is very good either. He's not exactly a good singer. OK presentation. Overall ... boring. Can't see this going anywhere.

Ooh ... !! My favorite tonight, Serbia! Their entry is called Beauty Never Lies and it's soo beautiful. I love it. :-) But wtf is she wearing. :-o OK, that outfit is seriously unbecoming. Bad choice. And too much makeup. But the song is still beautiful ... a gorgeous melody, catchy, beautiful and meaningful lyrics with just the right singer. May be too similar to last year's winner though - not in how it sounds, but in what they're trying to say with it - and that's never smart. Ooh, the bridge. This song just totally rocks! I love it!! :-D Sounds like the audience in the Stadthalle is totally digging it. YES! Fantastic. A+, Serbia!

Hungary - Wars For Nothing. Another song with an important message. But may be too low key. Ooh, gorgeous dress. And her voice is lovely. Hmm, this is actually packing quite a punch tonight.The presentation is a little over the top maybe, but overall this is very good. Much better than I expected. I may have to revise my ideas ...

Belarus - Time. At first, when I'd only seen the live version of this, I totally hated it. It was totally shitty in that version. The studio version sounds soo much better. What will they sound like tonight?? Hm. His voice is OK, not very good, but OK. The presentation is ... annoying. Distracting. Not a good choice. She plays beautifully, but looks a little wacky. Overall ... much better than at their national selection, but not as good as it could have been. I'm rather ambivalent about this entry.

Russia - A Million Voices. Ironic that Russia keeps sending these peace anthem-type songs. I would have been fine with it if Ukraine had been in the contest this year. :-( Anyway. Beautiful singer with a lovely voice. Someone who can actually really sing, yay. :-) She's really getting the audience going. Striking presentation. Deservedly a favorite, this is an excellent entry. Second strongest in this semi. :-)

Back to the green room. Cheers for Bojana! Yay! :-)

Yes, I would like to warm up my cell phone, alas, it would be pointless. :-(

Denmark - The Way You Are. Catchy and fun, but maybe too retro. I think this may appeal more to those parts of the audience that don't vote as much. On the other hand, these are four cute young guys who are clearly having fun on stage. And the song is really catchy. The entry as a whole is quite appealing. Good luck to our former colonial overlords. :-)

Albania - I'm Alive. Another ballad, another beautiful but bland entry. Lovely singer with a good voice. But she's not wearing her red sequined dress that I wanted to see her in again. :-( It would have been a much better choice than this weird outfit she's got on now. The presentation is ... a bit much, IMO. This is supposedly a favorite to win in some circles. That is seriously a mystery to me. This is very pretty to listen to, but quickly forgotten.

Romania - De la capat. Singing in Romanian, yay!! Major kudos to them. I really respect that. This is one of the really good entries tonight ... a beautiful melody, well performed by a really professional band, and with an important subject. Romania is one of my favorite countries in the contest ... I would love to see them win some time, but I don't think this is their year. Still though a very good entry.

Georgia - Warrior. WHAT is she wearing. OMG. And the lyrics of this song ... ! I kind of want to give her kudos for writing her own song, but seriously, does she speak English? I'm a warrior - oximated?? Oximated, really? I don't think that word means what you think it means ... o_O A very dramatic presentation of a dramatic song. I'm hard pressed to say exactly what is wrong with this, I just ... sheesh.

That's it!! 16 songs, over and done with. A brief visit with Conchita in the green room and then the voting is open. The only sensible way to do it. :-) I can't vote tonight since my country - Norway - isn't in this semi, so I just have to wait with bated breath. Now the runthrough.

Interval entertainment - a presentation of Vienna set to music from last year's contest, now also with fake animals heads. Well, why not.

Second runthrough.

OK, some guesses. Who will make it through?? I'm having a really hard time guessing tonight, this semi is generally so weak and there are hardly any really good songs, as well as no really bad ones. Huh. I'll have to try to guess.

And now, let's learn about Austria. Lots of fun facts about our host country mixed with memories from the ESC over the years. Hah, this actually is fun. :-)

And now some info about the Big Five, and presenting the Australian artist. Oh, haha, and the Australian connections! :-D And here are the French and Spanish singers. A runthrough of all the prequalified entries.

Over to Jon Ola Sand who will pronounce the results as valid. Oh, the excitement ... !! :-D

OK, so all my certains and maybes got through, and all except one of my non-qualifiers were cut. Huh, pretty good guesses after all. Everybody up on stage!! An excellent show from the Austrians! I'm already psyched for Thursday night ... not to mention Saturday!! Eep!!! :-D

Overall a great show with satisfactory results. I'll have to ask my boss tomorrow what he thinks about theirs. :-)

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About Me

I'm 36 years old. I live in Oslo, the capital of Norway. I love chocolate. I keep freshwater turtles. I like to travel and to see new places. I like to play board games and card games. I'm a big fan of Keanu Reeves, ElfQuest, The Phantom of the Opera, and the even more fantastic opera musical Which Witch. The highlight of my year is the Eurovision Song Contest. I love movies. My all-time favorite movie is Gone with the Wind. I LOVE to read. My favorite author is Terry Pratchett. My favorite book is The Count of Monte Christo.

A note on language

I write mostly in English on this blog. Whatever is written in Norwegian is something that either deals with situations, persons & phenomena specific to Norway, or is contigent on the reader understanding the Norwegian language in order to get the point.